World Series radio broadcasts lose power at worst possible time
Imagine being glued to your radio listening to a pivotal moment in an intense World Series game featuring your favorite team, and then all goes silent. You just know something big is about to happen, but you miss it because the audio disappears.
It sounds like a nightmare.
Unfortunately, during the Boston Red Sox 4-2 win against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series, it was the reality for fans listening to ESPN Radio, the Red Sox flagship broadcast on WEEI, and the Dodgers Spanish broadcast.
With the Red Sox mounting a fifth-inning, bases-loaded rally, all three broadcasts reportedly lost power, meaning fans hanging on every pitch were left in the dark for several minutes as the game was shifting to Boston’s favor.
Looks like the WEEI booth and Dodgers Spanish language ones also lost power. This is why everyone who works in radio is so high strung. Things like that. #WorldSeries #RedSox
— KW. (@KevinInChains) October 25, 2018
Seriously, the timing could not have been worse. The outage happened just before J.D. Martinez put the Red Sox ahead with a two-run single against Dodgers reliever Ryan Madson.
First time I’ve ever heard an announcer go silent on the radio due to audio difficulties would of course come in a bases loaded situation in the World Series.
— Ryan Young (@RYoungNY) October 25, 2018
The rally would prove to be the defining moment of Game 2. Once Boston took the lead on Martinez’s hit, they never looked back. The Red Sox now own a 2-0 lead in the series.
In today’s world of advanced technology, there’s always a way to find a score quickly. However, nothing replaces the feeling of being in the moment. It sounds like a lot of fans missed that moment during Game 2.
Credit though to the crews involved for doing their best to never lose stride. Especially ESPN Radio play-by-play man Dan Shulman. He really went the extra mile to paint a picture for their listeners during the outage.
ESPN Radio losing power in the booth and @DShulman_ESPN calling a go-ahead hit through a cell phone was one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard! #WorldSeries
— Matt Present (@matt_present) October 25, 2018
Props to the @MLBonESPNRadio crew calling the #WorldSeries tonight.There booth along with the Red Sox and Dodger Spanish Radio booths all lost power during the bottom of the 5th.A good textbook case on how to handle that kind of outage as pros.#HR4HR
— Deloy Sterns (@radiodeloy) October 25, 2018
All three broadcasts reportedly returned to the air relatively quickly and finished the game without any further interruptions.
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